William Bell to be sworn in

BIRMINGHAM, AL (WBRC) - William Bell will be sworn in Tuesday as Birmingham's newest mayor. He has already started putting together his staff.

Bell is retaining some old faces, but he's also bringing in some news ones. He says he will retain Police Chief A.C. Roper and Fire Chief Ivor Brooks. Bell also today named Jim Holbrook of Stern Agee as his financial advisor and Chuck Faush as chief of staff. Holbrook will work with the city's finance department to come up with solutions for fixing the city's multi-million dollar budget deficit.

Bell says its important to surround himself with people who have his same vision."I'm not looking to see someone else's staff," says Bell. "I'm looking to oversee William Bell's staff and that staff will be reflective of my personality and the way I want to see things progress"

Bell's win as mayor means his Jefferson County Commission seat was left vacant. The county's election commission will meet to certify last Tuesday's election votes and set a date for a special election to replace Bell on the commission.

The election is called for under a new state law and was pre-cleared by the Justice Department.